Fortify

Chapter Six

Sinclair was moodier than usual with me over the next several days. Kitch was aware my deck duties were some form of punishment from the little man, but I doubted he knew the real reason. It started out as a joke, but with the way Will was so mad, I was beginning to think I hit the nail on the head. So what was I to do except keep antagonizing him?

At first I did the very typical Captain-and-Will-sitting-in-a-tree bit, but quickly moved onto anything and everything else I could think of to annoy him.

And a lot annoyed him.

Truthfully, he could throw all the deck swabbing punishments he wanted at me. It was so worth it. Teasing him was becoming my favorite part of the day. It certainly had helped to pass the time a bit.

"Old married couple," Cook muttered on more than one occasion.

When I relayed this to Sinclair, he would absolutely fume. "As if I'd ever stoop so low!" His voice would get so high pitched, he almost sounded like a girl.

When Captain brought me into his cabin at the end of the week, he appeared more annoyed than usual with me. "Really, Sherwood?"

I feigned innocence. "What?"

"Making fun of my First Mate?" he laid out. "Is my life not hard enough as it is?"

I fought a smirk. "Just making the most of my time aboard, Captain."

"First of all, stop saying Captain like I'm some sort of a kid in a costume," Kitch snapped seriously. "I let it go the first dozen times, but it stops now. I'm not Will. I won't get flustered and dish out harmless cleaning duties. I will be respected as your leading commander. Is that understood?"

I nodded solemnly, feeling my cheeks heat up with embarrassment. I hated being dressed down. "Yes, Captain."

"Good. Second of all, keep the games on Will to a minimum, okay? I will not stand for him to be belittled in front of the rest of the crew. I let it go on because the kid had it coming a bit. But now I need to remind you that he is still second in command and that comes with a bit of respect."

This demand, I did not take as graciously. What a fun sucker.

"Russ?" Kitch prodded.

With a barely contained sigh, I agreed, "Yes, sir."

"I said a minimum," he reminded. "And not in front of the crew. Don't act like I just burst your bubble. Truthfully, it's been refreshing to see you at least somewhat enjoying yourself."

I raised my brow, a little doubtful. Kitch was a good guy, but he still worked for assholes. I was trying not to hold it against him because there's lots of people in the world that are good and their bosses are dickweeds. And while I still didn't know basically anything about the Big Wigs, I still got the distinct feeling they were corrupt.

Of course, I could never voice that to Kitch. He had to report everything back; and I needed them to believe I was reformed and would adhere to their rules...whatever those were. Obviously, I wasn't going to listen to them. Maybe I would just take it easy for a while when I made it back home. But I'd be damned if they kept me from using my birthright.

"Oh, don't give me that look," he admonished as he poured himself a glass of liquor. He held an empty glass as an offer and I shook my head. "Look, this restriction is what you make of it, kid."

"Okay, respectfully, don't call me kid anymore," I interjected. "I'm damn near twenty-four, and while I realize that's still plenty young, it does not make me a kid."

Captain nodded thoughtfully. "Alright, fair enough. I'm just saying, just because you're in a time out period doesn't mean you can't enjoy yourself a little bit. I know sea life isn't really your thing, but try to make the most of it. You might find something you like about it."